Run Apple hardware test without some keys

M

myle00

Registered
Hi,

My roommates MacBook Pro got spilled water on it. The problem now is that some keys (D, C and others), don't work or when pressed actually type out a few other unrelated keys. I'm trying to determine if it's worth to send it back to be fixed or if she should get a new one.

Right now I'm trying to run the apple Hardware test. I have the CDs, but because the C and D keys don't work I cannot get it to run when the computer starts. So I'm looking for a image that I can boot into and run it from there because the option key still works. None of these links seem to be for the MacBook Pro (http://www.info.apple.com/support/aht.html).

Thanks in advance for any help.
 
Any liquid spill, regardless of the liquid type or quantity, is never good.

Have you tried another keyboard? You could plug in a USB keyboard and try the various boot keys from that keyboard.

However, if the non-working keys are causing a continuous key-press, that might not help, either - but is worth a try...

If only the keyboard is damaged, you will be very lucky.
The MacBook should be opened up an inspected for other damage.
It may already be too late, but opening up the case, and getting it thoroughly dried out is absolutely your next step. The bad results of a liquid spill do not always show up immediately, and you can develop more problems over several days, or even several weeks. You should have someone who knows what they are looking for - check out your MacBook Pro.
 
Thanks for the reply.

I will have to borrow a USB keyboard from somewhere, but I'll try that next. The keys are not pressed continuously, but someone said on this website that it might not work from an external keyboard. If I remember correctly, it says to disconnect all the external devices before running the aht.

She was using the computer for a whole day after the spill, until she told me about it and I told her to shut it down. However, I made sure a few days passed in a warm place before we turned it ON again. But as far as I can see, the only problem is with the keyboard. The HD was reported as corrupt when running verify disk, but disk repair fixed it.

Right now I just want to know how much is damaged because if a lot is damaged it might be cheaper to buy a new computer. But if it's only a keyboard and such I'll tell her to take it to the store to get it fixed.

We do have full backups (after the fact). And I should say that I'm not too familiar with Macs.
 
If the 'option' key works, then you can boot to the Apple Hardware Test CD/DVD by holding 'option' and then selecting the Hardware Test CD/DVD from the icons that show up from the boot menu.
 
ElDiabloConCaca said:
If the 'option' key works, then you can boot to the Apple Hardware Test CD/DVD by holding 'option' and then selecting the Hardware Test CD/DVD from the icons that show up from the boot menu.
Click to expand...

There are two CDs with the computer. One is Mac install and the other is applications install. I can boot to the mac install CD, but that one doesn't have the aht, just a bunch of utilities and the option to install Mac. The Applications CD has the aht (I think), but is not bootable, you're supposed to install the applications from within the OS. See here: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1509 (at the end, we have v10.6)
 
I ran the full aht test using an external USB keyboard and it didn't find anything wrong. However, the D and C keys still don't work. So I'm not sure what to do.

Why do you think that some parts might get worse even if it works now? Because as it looks only the keyboard isn't working.

Thanks
 
Because - the moisture causes corrosion to BEGIN, and the damage caused by corrosion starts to eat into certain electronic connections and components. The damage can take a few days, or even several weeks.
Actually, booting to the AHT, and running the test, is a good sign that there wasn't much damage, and could be limited to just a few keys on the keyboard.
Replacing the keyboard is not too much of a job, but that's an opportunity to have someone who knows what to look for, to do that job of replacing the keyboard - which requires removing the top case, allowing access to look closely at the 'guts' of your laptop.
 
So, she's actually going to buy a new one. She talked with a company that fixes computers for our university and they said that because she had it on for a day after it got wet it's not worth to replace the keyboard because over time other things might go wrong, as you said, and they cannot guarantee that it's fixed after they work on it.

Thanks for all the help everyone.
 
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